Is a compromised interferon response an etiologic factor in Reyes syndrome?
Young mice injected with sublethal doses of Toximul MP8, a typical commercial polyoxyethylene ether-based emulsifier, died more frequently when infected with encephalomyocarditis virus than did control mice. Lymphocytes taken from emulsifier-injected mice responded poorly to interferon induction, unlike lymphocytes from control animals. Interferon protected control mice against viral encephalomyocarditis, but such protection was not equally demonstrable in emulsifier-injected mice. These data suggest that the enhanced lethality of encephalomyocarditis virus in emulsifier-injected mice is associated with and perhaps caused by a compromised interferon response in these animals. Since these emulsifiers are commonly found in the environment in areas where forests are sprayed with pesticides, a group of children suffering from Reye’s syndrome who lived in such areas was investigated. Blood samples were obtained from five children with influenza B-associated Reye’s syndrome during their acut
